Back to borrowing: US debt springs after ceiling lifted

The US Treasury moved quickly to feed the country's appetite for borrowing after an 11th hour political deal lifted the debt ceiling to avoid default, data showed Friday. Treasury figures showed the government went to the markets for an additional $300 million almost as soon as the $16.7 trillion cap was removed with the signature of President Barack Obama in the wee hours of Thursday morning. By the end of Thursday, the country's debt had risen to $17.03 trillion, Treasury data showed. At least part of the rise came with the resumption of the sale of state and local government series securities, which were suspended on May 17 after the $16.7 trillion ceiling was set and the Treasury needed to juggle operations to remain beneath it for as long as possible. The US needs to borrow increasingly more to bridge a monthly deficit averaging around $60 billion. But refusal by congressional Republicans to raise the ceiling in order to extract political concessions from their Democratic rivals and the White House almost forced the Treasury into a position of being cash short and defaulting on its obligations, including the debt. A last-minute political deal late Wednesday averted that possibility, but it stipulated that a fresh cap be instituted on February 7, 2014, leaving room for a new battle of brinksmanship over government finances.